When They Cry
by I Am The Raptor
Summary: Mikuo Hatsune is a normal boy with a normal life. Until he moves and meets his new friends. Better summary inside, parody of the anime When They Cry. Rated T for blood, gore, and character death. A lot of it. Review please! I don't own Vocaloid or WTC.
1. Chapter 1

**On one hot summer day in 1983, a transfer student named Mikuo Hatsune comes to a rural peaceful village in Hinamizawa. There, he befriends his classmates Miku, Haku, Yuki, and Rin. Accepted as a full-fledged member of the 'club', Mikuo and the gang plays all sorts of activities ranging from card and board games to hide-and-seek. But as Mikuo was beginning to be assimilated in simple rural life, he stumbles upon the dark history of Hinamizawa. As Mikuo dives deeper into the mystery, he finds that his new found friends may not be all they claim to be.**

**I was going to write this when I was done High School of the Dead but this anime was so good that I just couldn't resist! So, enjoy! I don't own Vocaloid or When They Cry.**

**Warning: This fic IS mystery and therefore will be extremely confusing in later chapters. Just warning you. Some characters may seem OC for now (Like Tei who comes in later) but you'll find out what happens later on.**

With a bat in hand, a teal haired boy swung the bat, breaking his bedroom lamp making the glass shatter as he brought it up and down, repeatedly hitting two girls, blood spattering all over the room. One of the girls had teal hair in pigtails, the other girl had long silver hair in one ponytail. The boy stopped beating them, observing what he had just done. His breathing was heavy, and he was on the verge of crying. He dropped the bat onto the floor, and simply stood there, staring at the two beaten to death bodies, traumatized.

_**XxXxXxXxX**_

The teal-haired boy opened his eyes slowly, getting up out of bed lazily. He really hated school. He stretched, and then relaxed flopping back onto his bed with a sigh. He quickly got up and got dressed, heading downstairs to see that his mother had already made him breakfast.

"Morning…" The boy mumbled tiredly.

"Morning!" His mother called back.

**A Few Minutes Later **

"I'm outta here!" The boy said after he finished his breakfast.

"Oh, Mikuo, do me a favor and tell Miku thanks for the leeks, OK?" His mother asked as Mikuo put his shoes on.

"Got it!" Mikuo called, opening the door and waving behind him as he walked out.

_It's been about a month since I moved to Hinamizawa. It's the first time I've found out the air can actually smell good!_

"Hello, Mikuo! Good morning to ya!" A girl with teal pig-tails called out, waving to Mikuo.

"So, you're early again. You know, you could sleep in every once in a while." Mikuo said, walking next to her.

"But if I slept in, then I'd risk making you wait for me!" The girl said, giving a cheery smile.

"What makes you think I'd wait?" Mikuo asked, looking the other way.

"Hey! Oh, Mikuo! That's mean! Why wouldn't you wait for me, I wait for you!" She exclaimed, her eyes filling with tears.

"Don't get all upset! I got better things to do!" Mikuo said.

"Why are you being so mean like this? Like this?" The girl asked.

She repeated her sentences often.

"Relax, of course I'd wait for you!" Mikuo said, smiling at the girl.

"Thanks that's nice of you." The girl said, blushing.

_This odd little one walking next to me who blushes a lot, that's Miku Kamui. I've only known her for a few weeks but I know that her name isn't the only weird thing about her._

Mikuo and Miku turned the corner to see a girl with long silver hair tied in a ponytail.

"Oh, there you are. What's going on? How come you're both so late?" The girl asked.

"Hi Haku! Good morning!" Miku called out.

"Hey, you're the one who's always late, not us!" Mikuo said.

"Long time no see, Mikuo. How many years has it been now?" Haku asked.

"I was only out for two days, Haku!" Mikuo said, catching up to the two girls.

_Unlike Miku, who's always so self-conscious, this one likes to set her own rules. Her name's Haku Yowane. She's an upperclassmen and pretty much the chic who runs the school._

"I had to leave because of a funeral!" Mikuo said, who was still arguing with Haku as they made their way to school.

"That's pretty much all we did the whole time." He said.

"Well, did you come through for me and bring me back what I asked you to?" Haku asked.

"I didn't bring back crap, I was at a freaking funeral, remember?" Mikuo fired back at Haku.

_Hinamizawa is a tiny little village. The only school has one classroom for everybody. Our class is made up out of only 15 students total, and they're all of different ages and different grades. And, we all share the same teacher. I don't know how she does it! It's gotta be hard teaching all those different grades at the same time. When other students need help, I sometimes end up having to teach Miku and Haku myself. _

"Wow, Mikuo, you're a really good teacher do you know that? You make this easy!" Miku exclaimed, highlighting a sentence in her notebook with a teal marker.

"Oh man, I _hate_ teaching you guys! It makes me realize how little I really know!" Mikuo said, slumping over in his chair.

"They say if you're going to teach someone then you better make sure you know it three times better than they do!" Haku said, holding up three fingers.

"HEY, WHAT AM I DOING TEACHING YOU, ANYWAY? AREN'T YOU A GRADE HIGHER THAN ME? YOU'RE THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE TEACHING ME, YOU KNOW!" Mikuo yelled, and Haku grabbed him by his forehead, pushing him backwards.

"Yeah, whatever, details, details!" Haku said as Mikuo just lay there on the floor.

"By the way, Mikuo, I was wondering what you're doing tomorrow? Got any plans? Do ya?" Miku asked.

Mikuo looked at her from the floor.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're still having a hard time finding your way around Hinamizawa, right?" Haku asked as Mikuo got off the floor.

"Yeah, kinda. I still can't figure out how to get anywhere besides school and the center of town." Mikuo said.

"That's what I thought! So tomorrow, Haku and I and Yuki are going to do Mikuo a favor! We're going to show you all around Hinamizawa by taking a big long walk through the whole area, OK? I was going to make lunch for all of us, too! Are you interested?" Miku asked.

"Yeah, c'mon! It'll be great!" Haku said.

"Sure, if I'm free." Mikuo said bluntly.

"Yo! What's up with the attitude? You've got two girls asking you out, here, you little punk!" Haku said, raising her fist threateningly while pouting.

"I said, if I'm free!" Mikuo said, smirking to himself.

Haku growled at him.

"Well, Mikuo, are you going to be free tomorrow? Are you?" Miku asked with sparkles in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm free!" Mikuo said, not able to resist Miku's sparkle eyes, making Haku growl again.

"Happy now!" Miku said cutely.

"Alright, what's your deal, dude? How come you treat her a whole lot better than you treat me, huh?" Haku asked with little devil horns growing out of her head and a doki on her forehead.

Mikuo stuck his tongue out at her while crossing his eyes.

"Miku, maybe just the two of us should hook up tomorrow!" Mikuo said.

"Sure, if that's what you want, Mikuo!" Miku said.

"WHAT'RE YOU TALKING ABOUT? I'M THE ONE WHO SUGGESTED THIS LITTLE OUTING IN THE FIRST PLACE!" Haku yelled angrily as Miku and Mikuo laughed.

After school, Mikuo, Miku, and Haku hiked up a nearby mountain until they came to a shrine.

"This place is called the Feruday shrine! I don't think there's anywhere around here with a better view!" Miku exclaimed.

"Great." Mikuo said dully.

"There'll be a big festival up here in the next break." Haku said.

"Cool." Mikuo said dully again.

"Ta-da!" Miku exclaimed, spreading her arms to reveal a whole area of food on a picnic blanket.

"Miku's deluxe lunch box special prepared especially for you!" Miku exclaimed.

"Wow, Miku, that's a lot of food." Mikuo said.

"Hope we're not interrupting." Said a voice from behind them.

The friends looked up to see a girl with short black pigtails, and next to her, a girl with short blonde hair in a big white bow.

"Oh! There you are!" Haku said.

"Hey, it's Rin and Yuki!" Mikuo said.

_These girls are in my class, too. Rin Kagamine and Yuki Kaai. This may go without saying, but they are a few grades younger than me. _

"What's going on? What's with all the excitement?" Rin asked.

"Can't you see for yourself? We're about to dig in at this awesome lunch that Miku made for us!" Mikuo exclaimed.

"I see that, you idiot! I'm not stupid, you know! What I wanted to know is why you guys are getting all cozy in someone else's front yard!" Rin exclaimed, whacking Mikuo in the face which made him fall down.

He quickly got up.

"Oh, back off! This shrine is public property! Stop acting like you own the place!" Mikuo yelled at her.

"Actually, Mikuo's right on this one! In a way, it's anybody's front yard!" Yuki said sweetly.

"Oooh! Yuki's always such a good little girl! Sit next to me, Yuki! I'll be happy to share with you!" Mikuo exclaimed.

Rin got an irritated look.

"Oh well, there's nothing I can do! It looks like you've left me no choice but to just sit down and join all of you!" Rin said, a devious smile on her face.

"No you won't! There's not enough room for you, and there's not enough food, either!" Mikuo exclaimed, sticking out his tongue and making a fart sound at Rin.

"Yes there is!" Rin yelled, and in a matter of seconds, Rin and Mikuo were having a slap fight.

"Alright, alright, stop it you guys! If Rin wants to join us, there's plenty of food for her!" Miku said.

"Nuh uh! Because I'm planning on eating Rin's share, too!" Mikuo said, starting to do his victory laugh.

"No, because I won't let you!" Rin yelled, still in her slap fight with Mikuo which then turned into wrestling.

"Here, have some chop sticks!" Yuki said, handing Rin some chop sticks.

"Wow! I can eat this whole spread!" Rin exclaimed, sitting next to Mikuo and starting to dig in.

"No you won't, not if I eat it first!" Mikuo yelled, grabbing random food and biting into it, now on a full out eating contest with Rin.

"Just look at 'em! It's so nice to be young!" Haku said.

"Well, eat up, everyone! There's no need to be shy, there's plenty of food!" Miku said.

"Come to daddy, beef patty!" Mikuo said, stabbing his chopsticks into a beef patty.

"If you think I'm gonna let you have that, you're crazy!" Rin yelled, raising her arm and elbowing Mikuo hard in the back of the neck.

"Ooow! Elbowing should really be against the rules!" Mikuo exclaimed, holding the back of his neck.

"Oh, there were rules?" Rin asked.

"Eating lunch together is so much fun, so much fun, I like it~!" Miku said in a little song.

"Wow, Miku, this lunch you made is really delicious!" Yuki exclaimed. H

Haku simply laughed at Mikuo and Rin.

_**XxXxXxXxX**_

"Well, I think it's time we call it a day!" Haku said after the picnic was over and the sun was setting.

"Alright, guys, see ya later!" Haku said, saluting.

"Thanks for putting this all together today, Haku. I had a good time!" Mikuo said.

"Well, see you tomorrow!" Miku said.

"Yep!" Haku called, and ran off.

"I'm glad you were able to hang out with us today, Mikuo, I had fun! Did you have fun, too?" Miku asked.

"Yep! I really enjoyed it! In fact, I had so much fun, I almost don't feel like going home!" Mikuo responded.

"Then maybe, if you don't mind, we can go someplace that I think is fun! Can we?" Miku asked.

"OK, but where? Is it far?" Mikuo asked.

"Well, it's a little bit of a walk, but not that bad! Come on! Follow me!" Miku yelled, starting to run down the path.

"Wait for me!" Mikuo exclaimed, chasing after her.

Miku giggled as they reached the place she wanted to go.

"I haven't been here for some time, now! Wonder what's there, wonder what's there~!" Miku said in a sing-song voice.

Mikuo looked over what seemed like a little cliff into a junkyard.

"You're saying it's been a while since you've been to this place? You mean the garbage dump?" Mikuo asked, looking at all of the garbage.

"Yeah, but it's not garbage to me! When I look around all I see are mountains of treasure! Look! A brand new mountain over there! Yippee! Yippee! Hooray!" Miku exclaimed, climbing down the piles of trash.

"Hey, wait!" Mikuo exclaimed, cautiously making his way down when he slipped on a soda can, banging his head and back on a metal pole.

"Ooow!" Mikuo groaned in pain.

"If you want to, you can stay there, I don't mind! I'll just be a few minutes!" Miku exclaimed, going deeper into the dump.

"Are all girls from the country like this?" Mikuo asked himself, leaning on some slightly rusted metal and staring at the sunset.

He closed his eyes for a moment, but his eyes flew open when he felt something in front of him. He looked up to see a man with a camera standing in front of him.

"You kinda surprised me!" The man said.

"Really? Cause that's what I was just about to say!" Mikuo said.

"Sorry about that, I wasn't trying to sneak up on you, promise. So, tell me, are you local? Are you from Hinamizawa?" The man asked.

"Yeah, sort've." Mikuo said.

"My name is Kiyoteru. I'm a freelance photographer. I come to Hinamizawa every now and then for work." Kiyoteru said.

"Hey, isn't it professional to ask somebody before you take their picture?" Mikuo asked, standing up.

"Sorry, my bad, I'm usually taking pictures of wild birds! I've never tried asking them, but maybe I should!" Kiyoteru said, and started laughing but then became quiet when he didn't hear Mikuo laughing back.

"Hey, Mikuo! Sorry for making you wait for so long! I'm almost done here, I promise!" Miku called out from the distance.

"Oh, you've got company. Is she looking for something specific down there, or just digging around?" Kiyoteru asked.

"I don't know. Maybe she's looking for that dead body she chopped up a few months back." Mikuo said.

Kiyoteru narrowed his eyes at him.

"That was a horrible crime. They're still missing one of the arms, aren't they?" Kiyoteru asked.

Mikuo, who had been joking, realized his eyes widened as cold sweat went down his face.

"Missing…what?" Mikuo asked.

He then heard Miku giggle from somewhere in the dump.

"Thanks for waiting, Mikuo!" Miku called out, making her way back up to him.

"Well, I should probably get going before they kick me out of here. Sorry for sneaking up on you like that, Mikuo. Take it easy!" Kiyoteru said, and left.

Mikuo stood there, still stunned after what he had just heard.

"You waited, you waited! Thank you! Hm? Mikuo?" Miku asked, seeing the look on his face.

Mikuo shook his head a bit, going back to his normal self.

"Well, tell me, how did it go? Find anything good down there?" Mikuo asked.

"Yeah, yeah I did! I did really good! I found the most awesome thing ever! The canta doll!" Miku exclaimed.

"What do you mean the canta doll? Are you talking about that gigantic plastic doll standing in front of that fried chicken place?" Mikuo asked.

"Yup! That's exactly it! Oh! It's really cute! I wanna take him home with me!" Miku cooed.

"Well, it's just trash, right? I'm sure if you take him home, nobody's going to mind." Mikuo said.

"Yeah, but, unfortunately, it's trapped under a huge pile of junk! I tried digging him out myself but I couldn't." Miku said sadly.

"How 'bout I help you out tomorrow, then? In exchange for that killer lunch you made today!" Mikuo said.

"Wow, thank you! Mikuo's gonna help me free my treasure! Then I can take him home and have him all to myself! Eeeeek!" Miku shrieked just thinking about it.

"Hey, Miku, has something bad every happened in this garbage dump?" Mikuo asked.

"I heard they were trying to build a dam here a while ago! But that's all I really know about it." Miku said.

"They tried to build a dam? Well then, maybe something happened, like, a construction accident. Is that possible?" Mikuo asked.

"I don't know." Miku said in almost a mono-tone voice, creeping Mikuo out a little.

"You see, I was living somewhere else up until last year!" Miku said, back to her normal cheery self.

"Really? Then you're a transfer student, too! I just assumed you were born here." Mikuo said.

Miku turned so that she wasn't facing Mikuo, a wicked smile on her face and her hair covering her eyes.

"No, I was a transfer so I don't know too much about what happened before I got here. Sorry Mikuo." Miku said.

"It's OK, no biggy." Mikuo said.

Miku turned to him and smiled.

_**XxXxXxXx**_

"Bye!"

"See you later!" Two kids called as they ran out of the classroom.

"Alright, in accordance to the rules of our club, I'd like to debate a brand new subject today. Let's see a show of hands to think it's a good idea to make Mikuo Hatsune the newest member to out club!" Haku asked, pointing at Mikuo.

"I don't object! Haha!" Miku said, putting her hand in the air.

"Ahahahahaha! Well if a little peasant could keep up with me then I guess I'm OK with it!" Rin said.

"Rin and I think that'd he'd be a nice edition to our club!" Yuki said.

"Then it's decided! Congratulations Mikuo Hatsune, you are now an official member of our club!" Haku exclaimed.

"Hey, hold on! What're you talking about? What makes you think I wanna join this club of yours anyway? I don't even know what the heck this thing's about!" Mikuo yelled.

Haku cleared her throat.

"Our club tries to capture the increasingly complicated actions of society through either prosperity or reverseity or activities or gaining upon the belief of no matter what happens we must always follow our-" Haku was saying dramatically when Yuki interrupted her.

"I think what she's trying to say is that all we do is sit around and play games!" Yuki exclaimed happily.

"Now it's starting to make sense." Mikuo said.

"Let me make one thing clear, this competition is fierce and we never play anything lame like house, so if you suck, you're gonna hate it." Haku said with a dark aura around her.

"Why do you take it so seriously? We should just have some fun!" Mikuo said.

"Yeah right! Rule number one: Always play to win no matter what! You have to put forth nothing less than your best effort! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" Haku yelled, squishing her finger against Mikuo's cheek.

"Which leads to rule number two! If you want to stay in the club than you must do everything in your power to win at all times!" Rin yelled, squishing two fingers against Mikuo's cheek

"Alright, alright, I get it." Mikuo said, massaging his cheeks.

"Playing a complicated game will probably put Mikuo at a disadvantage, so, why don't we pick a game today that everybody's familiar with? Here's my suggestion. How do you feel about Old Maid?" Haku asked.

"That sounds perfect!" Mikuo said.

"And for the punishment game, I say the winner can do anything they want to the person who's last. How does that sound to you guys, huh?" Haku asked.

"That sounds like a good plan to me!" Rin said.

"OK, let's shuffle the deck." Haku said, and started shuffling the cards.

"I'll start it with this one." Miku said, pulling out a card and handing some to Mikuo.

"These cards are worn out, they look like you've had them forever. I bet you can tell which is which from all the scratches and bends on the back's of these guys." Mikuo said, making everyone else grin evilly.

"OH COME ON, THAT'S TOTALLY NOT FAIR, THAT'S CHEATING!" Mikuo yelled.

"Rule number two clearly states that you have to do everything in your power to win at all times." Rin said.

"Don't worry, Mikuo, a lot of marks on these cards are obvious, I'm sure you'll catch on in no time." Miku said.

"Fine, if that's how you want to play, I'll take all of you cheaters on and still win!" Mikuo said, grabbing his cards.

They then started to play, and Haku chuckled evilly.

"Hey, Mikuo, I'm gonna read your cards from right to left. 3, 4, 9, Jack, Queen!" Haku said.

"WHAAAAA?" Mikuo yelled, because, she was right.

"By the way, it's not just the Jack, it's the Jack of Hearts!" Yuki added, making Mikuo groan in frustration.

Mikuo shuffled them like crazy, pointing them at Rin.

"You can shuffle them all you want, I can still read 'em!" Rin said, taking one of his cards.

"I'm out!" She said.

Mikuo slammed his head on the table.

"You're evil, you're all completely evil! Except for Miku, you're not evil, are you?" Mikuo asked.

"I'm sorry, Mikuo, but you've got the 3 of Hearts right here, don't you? I'm out, too!" Miku said.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA?" Mikuo yelled, and the game continued on, with him getting his butt kicked.

"Maybe this isn't fair, if we're gonna keep playing we should use a new deck. Mikuo seems to be having a hard time." Miku said.

"Trust me, he's a man, he can handle it! You're up for a little challenge, aren't you, Mikuo?" Haku asked.

"Yeah, you can do it, can't you?" Yuki asked, patting Mikuo on the head.

Mikuo growled and covered his cards.

"Oh come on Mikuo, you can't hide it! That's the 2 if Diamonds, isn't it?" Haku asked, grabbing one of the cards.

"What the-?" Haku asked, realizing it wasn't the card she was looking for.

"Wow, Haku knows those cards inside and out, she hardly ever makes a mistake!" Miku said.

"No, I didn't, Mikuo, what have you done to these cards?" Haku demanded.

Mikuo cracked a crazy smile and started laughing.

"I've so got you, Haku Yowane!" Mikuo said.

"You made another card look just like the 2 of Diamonds? Uh, wow, that was pretty clever for a guy like you." Rin said.

Yuki started clapping.

"Way to go, way to stick it to 'em this time!" Yuki said, and Mikuo chuckled.

"I can't believe it, Mikuo, you got her! Great job!" Miku said.

"I have to admit, I knew all along that you had it in you. But you kinda surprised me on this one. It's more impressive than I expected." Haku said.

"Although, that move came a little too late." Rin said, glancing at his score board.

"Yeah, I know, I still end up in last place. But, as long as I can get a dig at Haku then I'm good with it." Mikuo said.

Haku got out of her seat, grinning evilly.

"Well, loser, I think it's time for the punishment game, now. Seeing how this is your first day in our club I'll go easy on you. After all, I don't want to traumatize you so much that you don't show up to school tomorrow." Haku said, holding up a marker.

Rin and Yuki held Mikuo's legs while Miku held his shoulders back, and Haku walked towards him with the marker.

"Here I come~!" She cooed.

Mikuo knew what was coming.

"Get ready~!" She said, taking off the cap.

Mikuo tried to struggle in vain.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Mikuo screamed.

_**XxXxXxX**_

"She wants to get the canta doll? Oh, I get it. I guess that's why Miku ran out of there so fast today." Haku said.

"I can't believe she thought that thing is cute. She can be pretty weird sometimes." Mikuo said, his face decorated to make it look like a cat.

"Yeah, some of her hobbies are rather odd. I mean, once she finds something she thinks is cute, there isn't anything you can say that will tear her away from it." Haku said.

"Hey, about that place, the construction site, it kinda seemed like something bad happened there." Mikuo said.

"Something did. Government officials came by one day and said they were going to kick us out of the village so they could build a dam there."

"They were going to kick you out?"

"Yeah, they were, so, we decided to fight 'em. Everyone joined in, and I suppose if we hadn't, this while village would be underwater right about now."

"Wow, I'm surprised you guys actually won. I mean, it was the government you were going up against."

"Well, everyone in the village, including the village leader pulled people together and petitioned anyone they could. They even went to Tokyo so they could negotiate with the politicians there. In the midst of that, eventually the plans were drawn. And that's how the little guys took down the big guys." Haku said, and giggled to herself.

"Interesting. Were there any clashes between you and them? You know, like murder or assault or anything like that?" Mikuo asked.

Haku bowed her head, her hair covering her eyes and she stopped walking.

"No. Nothing." Haku said in that monotone voice Miku had used.

"Oh, OK." Mikuo said, confused.

"OK then, see ya tomorrow! And that ink better stay on your face until you get home, you got that, Mikuo?" Haku said, and ran off.

"Fine, whatever, I'll leave it on, then." Mikuo said.

_**XxXxXxX**_

Miku continued to pull the garbage away, but to no avail.

"What's up, Miku?" Mikuo said, making Miku turn around.

"Working hard, are ya?" Mikuo said, hopping down the garbage to Miku.

"What a surprise! Hey, Mikuo! What're you doing here?" Miku asked.

Mikuo then saluted quickly.

"I received urgent information on an innocent victim, so where is this person? How can I help?" Mikuo asked, looking left, right, and then Miku's chest.

"Um…no victim…" Miku said.

"According to my report some dastardly devil has taken the canta doll and buried him alive in garbage." Mikuo said, still saluting.

At first, Miku was confused, but then she smiled widely.

"Oh, now I get it! Sorry, I wasn't following." Miku said and giggled.

"So, come on, where is this guy anyway?" Mikuo asked.

"Oh, OK, he's right here! Look, he's buried pretty deep. Can you see him?" Miku asked, looking down into a little hole.

"Wow, he really was buried alive. I'm afraid if we're going to get this guy out of here, we're gonna need an axe or something." Mikuo said.

"Wait right here, OK?" Miku asked, getting up.

She then ran off and Mikuo started looking around, and saw a pile of magazines. Confused, he picked them up and started looking at them.

"_It was a horrible crime. They're still missing one of the arms, aren't they?"_

Mikuo flipped one of the pages, showing a report about the dam.

"Horrible tragedy at the Hinamizawa dam…winched and hacked to pieces…? The murderers attacked the victim with hatchets and pick axes….after torturing the victim, they used the hatchet to cut out the victims corpse into six parts…head, arms, legs, and torso…one of the murderers…is still on the loose…?" Mikuo mumbled the report out loud.

"_I don't know."_

"_No. Nothing."_

"It's true…there was a murder…" Mikuo mumbled.

_You know, looking back at that moment, I can't help but think about why the Cicadas were just screaming that night. They were warning me. Warning me about everything that was about to go wrong._

Miku walked across the road back to where Mikuo was, smiling wickedly and dragging a hatchet behind her. She looked into the garbage dump and saw Mikuo, and she giggled to herself.

**A/N: OH MY GOD, MIKU IS EEEEVVVVVIIIIILLLLL! Or is she? I don't know. Well, I do, I'm just not telling you~! Review please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: OK, for all you Len fans who want him in the story, he comes in this chapter…sort of. He's mentioned. Anyway, sorry for the long wait, school is coming up in 2 days and we're in the middle of a hurricane, and electricity is going out, and all that crap. Our other stories are resting in Alice's hands, but she got flooding in her basement so she'll be busy for a bit…*head desk* anyway, so, enjoy the chapter!**

Mikuo flipped through the pages of the paper, staring in horror at the report.

"It's true…there was a murder…" Mikuo mumbled to himself.

Miku slowly walked towards him, carrying the hatchet when she stepped on a loose piece of metal, making a loud noise. Mikuo whipped around, seeing the hatchet in her hand, and feeling his blood turn to ice, and his eyes widened.

"AAAAAH!" Mikuo screamed, and fell down the little hill of trash.

Miku ran over to him quickly, a look of worry on her face.

"Are you ok? Are you?" Miku asked.

"I guess…you scared the crap out of me, though!" Mikuo exclaimed.

"Well, you said that you needed an axe or something so that you could get him out, and that's why…" Miku said, holding up the hatchet.

"Yeah, and you brought a big one, too. But, it's getting kinda dark now, how about we do this tomorrow?" Mikuo asked, getting up.

Miku bowed her head sadly.

"Ok, sure…" Miku said.

"Hey, don't get all sad and stuff! We'll dig out the canta doll tomorrow, ok?" Mikuo asked.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Miku said, and giggled.

_**XxXxXxXxXx**_

"Festival?" Mikuo asked Haku at school.

"I told you about it the other day, the Cotton Drifting Festival! Yuki's got a spot on the festivals executive committee. Isn't that so?" Haku asked Yuki.

"Yep, it is!" Yuki exclaimed.

"Oh. So what's this Cotton Drifting Festival thing all about, anyway?" Mikuo asked.

"It's when we get to take all our worn out blankets and padded kimonos and, we pay our respects to them by having a memorial service and then we send them floating down the stream." Haku said, putting her hands together.

"Yeah, you know, that sounds like a really boring festival." Mikuo said.

"NO, IT IS DEFINITELY NOT BORING! We can't wait for the-"

"COTTON DRIFTING FESTIVAL'S BATTLE OF THE FOUR EVILS!" Haku, Yuki, Miku, and Rin yelled all at the same time.

"The battle of the huh?" Mikuo asked.

"Well, actually, since you're with us now, it'll be called the battle of five evils!" Yuki said.

"Five?" Mikuo asked, and Rin laughed at him.

"On the day of the festival, you're gonna show everyone in the village all the skills you've learned in our club!" Rin said.

"What she means is, we'll be doing our club activities at each of the street stalls!" Yuki said.

Everyone then started laughing.

"Oh, I get it." Mikuo said.

_**XxXxXxXxXxXxXx **_

Kiyoteru aimed his camera, taking a shot of a bird just before it flew away. He started to get his camera ready to take another shot, when he heard a voice behind him.

"Hey there!" Mikuo called out to him.

Kiyoteru turned around, seeing Mikuo with Haku and Miku.

"Oh, hey Mikuo! Nice to see you again!" Kiyoteru called out.

"Nice to see you, too!" Mikuo said.

"Have you taken any good pictures?" Haku asked.

"Yeah, I think I got a couple good ones. Wow, Mikuo, I didn't know you were such a popular guy! I'm jealous! I want to be surrounded by girls, too!" Kiyoteru said.

"HUH? No! It's not like that at all!" Mikuo exclaimed.

"You gonna be here long enough to see this years Cotton Drifting Festival?" Haku asked.

"Yeah, that's the plan! Figure I'd blow off a few rolls of film on the festival and go back to Tokyo the day after." Kiyoteru said.

"Well, I hope that your pictures will win a whole bunch of rewards!" Miku said.

"Huh?" Kiyoteru then started laughing.

"I'll see you guys at the festival!" He said, and walked off.

"See ya!" Haku called to him.

"So you guys know that Mr. Hiyama guy, too, huh?" Mikuo asked.

Both Miku and Haku nodded.

"He comes to Hinamizawa about two or three times a year." Haku said.

"He's always taking pictures of the seasons and the wild birds, too." Miku added.

"Wild birds, huh?" Mikuo said.

_A couple days later, the Cotton Drifting Festival arrived right on schedule. _

Yuki walked up to the group, dressed in a red and white Kimono.

"Hi everybody! Are you ready for the festival?" Yuki asked them.

"Wow, nice!" Haku said at her kimono.

"You look great!" Rin said.

"You're so cute! I wanna take you home with me!" Miku exclaimed.

"All right, guys, LET'S DO THIS FESTIVAL!" Haku yelled.

"YEAH!" Everyone else yelled, running towards the game booths.

"Looks like those kids are at it again!" Kiyoteru said.

"First up, an eating competition! Who shall be the last one standing!" Haku yelled.

First, spicy food. Mikuo popped it into his mouth, and immediately stuck his tongue out as tears came out of his eyes from the hotness. Miku had a pained expression, breathing out smoke. Haku was smiling widely. Yuki was covering her mouth with one hand and Rin had her mouth wide open with pain.

Next, cold drinks.

"BRAIN FREEZE!" Haku yelled, hitting her head.

Mikuo was gouging it down as quick as he could. Rin had swirly eyes and she was holding her head. Yuki was calmly eating it. Miku was banging her head on the ground.

Next, cotton candy. Mikuo just stood there, staring at Rin.

"I'M NOT GONNA LOSE!" She yelled, scarfing down her cotton candy at full speed.

Haku was nibbling on it and so was Miku. Yuki was for some strange reason licking it.

Next, they started playing games. First was a shooting game. Haku was cheering them on and Mikuo was next to her, smiling at Yuki who was aiming at something, and Miku was pointing at something she found extremely cute, with Rin behind her wanting a turn.

Yuki and Miku slouched over in defeat since they hadn't gotten what they wanted. Rin tried to cheer them up and Haku watched as Mikuo aimed the gun at a teddy bear and shot at it. He shot the gun, and the bullet hit the teddy bear.

"GOTCHA!" Mikuo yelled.

Miku grabbed it and started hugging it.

_**XxXxXxXxXxXx**_

A man wearing a Demons mask took a large stick, banging it against the drum making a loud, booming, noise. Yuki, holding a long staff, drew it over a pile of cotton, separating it into chunks. Everyone at the festival watched the ritual, and Kiyoteru snapped pictures of Yuki. Everyone started taking their own balls of cotton from the pile, and walking to the river.

"Cotton drifting, huh?" Mikuo asked as people let the cotton go into the river.

"Yeah, the cotton absorbs all the bad stuff from your body. Then you throw the cotton ball into the stream and that's it, you're all done!" Miku said as Mikuo released his piece of cotton into the river.

"Oh." He said.

Mikuo got up and started walking along the path, and turned around, but didn't see Miku there.

"Hey, where's Miku? She was here a second ago…" Mikuo mumbled, and then turned to see Kiyoteru talking with another woman with long blonde hair.

"Mr. Hiyama!" Mikuo said, running down the hill to the two adults.

"Hey, how ya doing? Where's everyone else?" Kiyoteru asked.

"Guess I got separated from them." Mikuo said.

"So, what'd you think of it, Mikuo? Were you able to enjoy the festival?" The blonde woman asked.

"I guess." Mikuo said.

"Really?" The woman asked.

"_Who is this person anyway?" _Mikuo thought.

"So, do you think that after tonight you can say you're a part of Hinamizawa?" The woman asked.

"I don't know. I get the feeling I'm still in the dark about a lot of things." Mikuo said.

"What, you mean about Hinamizawa?" Kiyoteru asked.

"Yeah, I guess so. Well, there's that stuff about the dam. I heard Hinamizawa came close to being underwater. That was a big deal back then, wasn't it?" Mikuo asked.

"I think they started planning about the damns construction seven or eight years ago. For a while, it looked like Hinamizawa and other villages uphill were going to be underwater." Kiyoteru responded.

"Man, you're kidding?" Mikuo said.

"Most of the town protested it, and eventually got to the courts, and found all the scandals and corruption around the whole thing. In the midst of all this mess, construction on the dam was canceled." Kiyoteru said.

"What about…a murder where someone was chopped up. Did you hear about that?" Mikuo asked cautiously.

"I heard about that. It happened around four years ago this time of year. I think it was around the day of the Cotton Drifting Festival, too." Kiyoteru said, looking up at the sky.

"All the old folks in town were positive that the murder was a result of Oyashirou." The blonde woman said.

"Oyashirou? What's that about?" Mikuo asked.

"People said it was refined punishment by Oyashirou. The God of Hinamizawa for revenge. For revenge of flooding the village." Kiyoteru said.

"Since that time, it's happened every single year." The woman said.

"What do you mean? What's happened?" Mikuo asked, getting nervous.

"Each year, on the day of the Cotton Drifting Festival, somebody dies." Kiyoteru said.

"Every year?" Mikuo asked urgently, in shock.

Kiyoteru nodded.

"On the day of the festival, a year after the hacked up body was found, a resident of Hinamizawa who supported the dam construction died and fell off a cliff and into the water. Poor guy was on vacation. As for his wife, well, they never found her body." Kiyoteru explained.

"And the year after that, on the night of the festival, the priest of the shrine came down with an unknown illness and dropped dead on the spot. His wife drowned herself in the swamp that very same night." The blonde woman said.

"The following year, also on the night of the Cotton Drifting Festival, a house wife who lived in the neighborhood was found beaten to death." Kiyoteru said.

"Really?" Mikuo asked.

"I know, strange, isn't it? Remember the man who fell off the cliff and died? Well, actually, his younger brother was married to the housewife." The blonde woman said.

"After that first murder, there have been four Cotton Drifting Festivals. The fifth one is…"

"Tonight." The blonde woman finished.

_**XxXxXxXxXx**_

_What Mr. Hiyama told me really freaked me out. All those mysterious deaths that happened during the Cotton Drifting Festival. And to think, I actually believed I had nothing to do with that._

"I just solved the mystery! The suspect is Yuki! Her weapon was poison! She did it in the nurses office!" Haku said, flipping over three game cards.

"GOD DAMN IT, NO!" Mikuo yelled.

"WHY DIDN'T I GET THAT?" Rin yelled with Mikuo.

"I like using poison to kill, because it's a gentle death!" Yuki said happily.

"Ha! That was too easy!" Haku said as Mikuo head desked.

"Alright, just one more game! Come on! But first, I have to use the bathroom!" Mikuo said, getting out of his seat.

"Have fun making your number 2, buddy!" Haku called after him.

"Ew, Haku, that's gross!" Yuki exclaimed.

"Ha-ha, suckers, this will give me plenty of time to plan my strategy!" Mikuo said.

"Oh, Mikuo, I believe there's a gentleman here who would like to have a word with you. I told him to wait at the entrance, ok?" The teacher asked, coming out of the office as Mikuo walked down the hall.

"I've got a visitor?" Mikuo asked.

The teacher simply nodded and Mikuo walked out of the school to see a man with gray hair in a stubby ponytail, red eyes, and was smoking.

"Are you Hatsune? Mikuo Hatsune?" The man asked.

"Yeah, that's me. Who are you?" Mikuo asked.

"My car's got air conditioning. Mind if we talk in there? I promise it'll only take a minute." The man asked, pulling out a badge.

Mikuo, confused, walked into the car with the man and sat down in the back seat while the man sat in the front.

"So, what do you want to talk to me about?" Mikuo asked.

"The man in the picture. You know him? If you do, I'd like you to tell me anything you can about him." The man said.

Mikuo took the picture, and studied it for a moment.

"Isn't this…Mr. Hiyama?" Mikuo asked.

"Well, then, you probably know the lady in this picture too, right?" The man asked, fishing around in the car and pulling out another picture.

It was the blonde woman.

"Well, yeah…but, I don't know her name, but she was with Mr. Hiyama last night." Mikuo said.

"So, when was the last time you saw both of 'em?" The man asked.

"Last night. Well, I talked with them at the Cotton Drifting Festival." Mikuo said.

The man breathed out some smoke from his cigarette.

"And did you notice anything strange about 'em? I need you to tell me everything you can remember." He asked.

"Wait, did something happen to them?" Mikuo asked urgently.

"Well, for starters, the guy in the picture, he died last night." The man said, opening his window to get the smoke out.

Mikuo gaped at him.

"WHAT?" Mikuo yelled.

"He was killed on the night of the Cotton Drifting Festival. I'm sure you know what that means, don't you?" The man asked.

"What that means? Do you mean the curse of Oyashirou or something? Can you tell me what happened to him?" Mikuo asked.

"His body was found by one of our patrol cars as he was heading back to the station from the festival. The time was…5 minutes to midnight. It happened right where the road starts leading out of town. Y'know, the part where the pavement starts? It was dark, except for one or two speed lights. And so, we found Mr. Hiyama's body on the shoulder of the road. Very dead. All around the body and everywhere else was covered with blood. The autopsy told us he slit his own throat with his fingernails. For some reason, Mr. Hiyama decided he would use all of his strength to claw at his own throat. He kept on digging away at himself until he got to an artery. Dug through that as well. We thought he might've been on drugs. We ran a bunch of tests, and every one of 'em came back negative. We did find something else. His body had other wounds on it. It's a possibility he was attacked by someone. Perhaps more than one person, we don't know…"

"More than one?"

"We've got the time of death estimated at between 9 and 11 p.m. That means he died right after you saw him."

"What about the woman?"

"Yeah, well, the lady's still missing and it looks like she might've been involved somehow in this ugly incident. The way things turned out, people are going to start thinking it was the curse of Oyashirou who killed Mr. Hiyama. To them, they'll think that Oyashirou got upset at Mr. Hiyama, running around during the ritual, taking all those pictures, that's the way people will look at it, anyway."

"You've gotta be kidding! Come on, nobody dies from divine punishments or curses!"

"Well, you definitely have a point there. Hatsune, I need someone from Hinamizawa who doesn't believe in curses to help me out on this one. You can keep me informed, even it it's a rumor, I wanna know about it. By the way, here's my card with my number. Everything we've talked about is confidential, OK? You keep quiet about it, especially around that Yowane girl and her friends." The man said, handing Mikuo a card.

"Yowane girl? Are you talking about Haku? Is she involved?" Mikuo asked.

"Right now, I've got no idea on who might be involved, or just how involved they may be. That's why I don't want you to tell anything to anyone in the village."

"I can't do that!"

"Think about it this way; you wanna keep it a secret because you don't want any of the villagers to believe in the curse to start worrying. So, tell me, does that work for 'ya?"

"I…I guess it does…um…"

"Name's Dell, from the Okinomiro police."

"O-OK…" Mikuo said, walking out of the car and back to school.

_Last night…I couldn't get to sleep…I kept thinking about what that cop Dell told me…_

"I heard she disappeared on the night of the Cotton Drifting Festival." Haku whispered to Miku.

Miku whispered something back but Mikuo couldn't make out what she said.

"I think they were spirited away by the Demon." Haku whispered back.

_Spirited away by the Demon? What's that?_

"If it really was Oyashirou…him." Haku whispered, but Mikuo couldn't make out everything Haku said after Oyashirou.

"Am I next? Am I?" Miku whispered to Haku.

"You came back, so you should be fine."

"But…Len didn't, right?"

"That's all in the past, now. Let's not talk about this anymore."

_**XxXxXxXxXxXxX**_

"Oh no, I forgot! I promised I'd help my uncle today! Sorry everyone, I can't do the club thing!" Haku exclaimed, bowing to everyone.

"You promised to help your uncle out today? I didn't know you were that accommodating." Mikuo said.

"Heh, sorry everybody! I'm going home for today!" Haku said and left.

"Guess that means club is canceled for today." Rin said, putting her cards down and leaving the classroom with Yuki.

"Man!" Mikuo moaned.

"Have a good rest of the day! See you tomorrow!" Rin called to them.

"Bye you guys!" Yuki called and followed Rin out of the school.

"OK, see you guys tomorrow!" Miku said.

"Careful on your way home, guys!" Mikuo said.

"Man, and I was really looking forward to playing this game today." Mikuo said.

He then noticed a card with a name he didn't recognize.

_Len? Who's that?_

"Hey, Miku, do you know if there were any students who ever transferred out of the school?" Mikuo asked.

"Yeah, a couple have." Miku said, fixing the chairs.

"Do you know if this Len guy was one of 'em?" Mikuo asked.

Miku stopped dead, her hair covering her eyes.

"Sorry, I really don't know. I think he transferred out around the same time I came here. That's the reason I never really got the chance to talk to him much!" Miku said, turning to face Mikuo smiling.

Mikuo raised and eyebrow at her. They left the school, and started walking down the muddy path from the rain yesterday.

"Hey, Miku, you guys aren't lying or keeping any secrets from me, are you?" Mikuo asked.

"Secrets? We're not keeping any secrets." Miku said innocently.

"You're lying."

"What's that supposed to mean? Huh, Mikuo?"

"You're keeping something secret from me, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah, and what about you? Aren't you lying and keeping secrets from all of us? Aren't you?" Miku asked, the pupils of her eyes now slits.

Mikuo's eyes widened.

"Aren't you? Aren't you keeping secrets from us? Well, aren't you?" Miku asked, smiling wickedly.

"No…I'm not lying…or keeping any secrets, either…" Mikuo said, looking away.

"You're lying."

"But…why do you think I'm lying?"

"Yesterday, when we were doing our club, you said you went to the teachers office when she called you, didn't you? But you didn't, did you? I know for a fact that you didn't go to the teachers office. You were sitting in a car, parked by the gate, talking to someone. A man you don't know. Tell me, just who was it?"

"I…I…I didn't really know the guy…"

"Well, then what would a guy you don't even know talk to you about?"

"Well, yeah, that's what I wanted to know!"

"Fine then, what were you talking about?"

"It didn't have anything to do with you guys, I promise."

"LIAR!" Miku screamed at the top if her lungs.

"Just like you have secrets and things to hide from us, we have secrets and things to hide from you." Miku said, her wicked grin returning as she walked closer to Mikuo.

"U-um, sure, I got ya…" Mikuo said nervously.

Miku backed away, her eyes returning to normal, and she giggled.

"Let's go, it's starting to get cold out!" Miku said cheerily and started walking home.

_**XxXxXxXxXxX**_

"Mikuo! You have a call from the bookstore!" Mikuo's mother called to him.

"Bookstore? At this hour?" Mikuo asked.

He then picked up the phone.

"Hello?" Mikuo asked into the phone line.

"_Yeah, sorry for calling so late. This is Dell, calling from the bookstore." _Dell said from across the line.

"Oh, hey there detective Dell."

"So, anything interesting you wanna tell me about?" Dell asked while other people in the area were playing games.

"_Yeah, do you know what spirited away by the Demon means?"_ Mikuo asked.

"It's an expression unique to that village. But as far as the terminology goes it's not as different as the regular spirited away."

"_Really."_

"A long time ago, Hinamizawa was feared because it was called the village of the Demon." Dell said, finishing the rest of his cigarette and pulling out another one.

"_Demon? Like the ones in Hell?" _Mikuo asked.

"Hm…well, more like the man-eating ones. The kind that go down to the village, kidnap people, and eat them. Just some scary old fairytale that's been passed down."

"Miku and Haku were talking about it. Something about Oyashirou and being spirited away." Mikuo said, fiddling with a piece of paper.

"_Hatsune, you know about the first murder? The guy who got chopped up?" _Dell asked.

"Yeah, and of each of the 6 killers. One is still on the run, isn't that right?"

"_What if the one on the run isn't on the run? What if they were spirited away by the Demon?"_

"Then what about the accident that happened a year after that? Y'know, the one where the man and his wife who supported the dam construction both died?"

"_Well, to tell you the truth, truly only the husband died in that accident. His wife's body still hasn't been found."_

"The year after that, the third year, where that priest got sick and died, and his wife committed suicide?"

"_Same thing goes for that one, too. We just have a suicide note, the body of the wife was never found."_

"What?"

"_I'm not sure if I call any of that spirited away by the Demon, but every time there's a case of Oyashirou's curse, one person dies, and another disappears."_

"Then what about the housewife that was beaten to death last year? Was anybody reported missing after that happened? You guys did manage to catch the murderer, right?"

"Oh yeah, we caught that guy. Caught him pretty good. Thought he was a drug addict. The thing is, though, it wasn't too long after he was arrested and put behind bars that we discovered one of the dead ladies children had actually been reported missing." Dell said, fiddling with some pennies.

"_What? Even after you caught the guy who did it?" _Mikuo asked.

"He died at the detention center after the interrogation. So, I guess you could say the truth remains to be told."

"_Well, what about the ladies missing kid?"_

"Yeah, the kid's about a year older than you or was. Got his name right here. Len Kagamine."

Mikuo's eyes widened, remembering the card he had seen at school.

"_Kid went to the same school you do." _Dell said.

"**You'll be sitting at that desk, one of our students transferred out."** Mikuo remembered his teacher say when he had first arrived in Hinamizawa.

"Hey, Mikuo, could you get the door for me?" Mikuo's dad called outside the door.

"I'm sorry, my dad's calling me, I'm gonna have to hang up now, OK?" Mikuo whispered into the phone.

"_Just call if anything else happens." _Dell said, and hung up.

"Hey, hurry up and open the door!" Mikuo's dad yelled.

Mikuo got up off the floor and slid open his bedroom door. He noticed that his dad was carrying two cups of tea on a tray.

"What's that for?" Mikuo asked.

"Oh, come on, son, wasn't Miku here just a minute ago? I figured the least I could do was bring you guys some tea." His dad said.

Mikuo's eyes widened in horror.

"Did she leave already?" Mikuo's father asked.

"Miku…was…" Mikuo stuttered.

"Oh, don't hide it, weren't you two talking the whole time?" His dad asked.

"Um, dad, did you see her walk up the stairs?"

"Yes, I did. Told her your room was straight up the stairs and first room to the right!"

Mikuo's eyes widened to the point where he thought they were going to pop out of his head. He slid his door shut in his dads face.

"H-hey! What are you doing, Mikuo? You don't have to embarrassed!" His father called.

_I was positive Miku was there a minute ago…now I'm sure of it…she'd been standing right outside my room the entire time…she heard everything I said to detective Dell…_

Miku stood outside, looking into Mikuo's window with no emotion on her face, her pupils now slits.

**A/N: Muahaha! Now things are starting to get exciting! Anyway, you see the little button right there, underneath this message? Review, or Miku will hack you into pieces with her hatchet! *evil laughter***


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